Lovely Complications
by JulietVargas
Summary: A play off of Sekai ichi Hatsukoi and some Junjou Romantica. Has many pairings, some just talked about or hinted at, and several...especially the main ones...explored. M just to be safe.  No overly descriptive sex scenes...that's not my style!
1. Prologue

_(Author's Notes:_

_First: I did keep really close in the flashback but the rest of the story is not going to fully follow the same events of the Anime/Manga Sekai ichi Hatsukoi nor Junjou Romantica._

_Second: This is based off of both those Animes/Mangas so there are going to be several characters and 8 different stories playing throughout. Mostly though, it will revolve around the main pairing Spamano (Lovino and Antonio)_

_Third: If you have any questions at the moment about who is going to play the other main roles then feel free to pm_

_Fourth: Lovino is out of character in the prologue because Ritsu used to be sweet and open so I felt the need to make him that way too. Don't worry he'll go back to the good old irritated Romano that we all love! ;D_

_Finally...Enjoy!)_

Prologue

"_It wasn't supposed to happen. I was not my brother; I was supposed to be better at keeping my feelings in check. Back then though I was actually more open around people that I trusted and cared about. But not in front of strangers...or those that I had never actually been introduced to. But I wasn't watching closely enough that day."_

15 year old Lovino Vargas looked up in surprise when his hand brushed against someone else's that was reaching for the same book. His breath caught and his heart went wild.

"T...Toni Carreido!" his voice came out in a slightly squeaky gasp that made him incredibly embarrassed and he dropped his eyes. This was not good.

"_Yeah I wasn't watching closely enough. I had been observing him from afar for so long, always dreading to get too close because of what I might do. That I might just slip and not be able to control myself."_

The young teen found his face heating up as he stepped away from the other taller teen.

"Ah scusa...you...you can have the book." He prepared himself to run but the other's voice stopped him in his tracks.

"No, está bien." the older teen laughed pleasantly, "You can have it. He pulled the book off the shelf and handed it to Lovino with a bright smile." Then he paused and studied the younger as the boy bowed hurriedly, "But um...how is it you know my name?"

_Crap! This was most definitely not good!_

"_I had been watching him at school for three years, this was the fourth. Right from the start I had decided to keep all of my feelings locked inside and didn't even reveal them to my brother. I most certainly had never had any intention of telling Toni Carreido of all people. Yet when he was before me...I just couldn't control myself. The truth was...I loved him. I Loved Him. I LOVED HIM!"_

"I love you."

Lovino realized just what he had blurted out and stepped back clamping a hand over his mouth.

"Ah...I mean..."

The older boy laughed nervously and ran a hand through his hair.

"Ah I see. That explains a few things then."

Lovino just looked down at the floor feeling completely horrified and embarrassed over what he had done. Feliciano was the one that spoke without thinking. Not him...not really at least. He was about to bow again and excuse himself, in order to hide his red face away but a gentle tousle of his hair made him look up in surprise. The other boy was smiling at him with genuine warmth.

"_Back then everything seemed so right. So pure, as Feliciano would say...but now...10 years later..."_

"Huh?" The young man exclaimed in complete shock and rage, "I'm being put in the manga department?"

"_At age 25...I, Lovino Vargas...Have become a completely Jaded adult."_


	2. Lovino Ch1

**_The Case of Lovino Vargas Ch.1_**

"There must be some mistake." Lovino shook his head, "I was a literature editor at my last company. I specifically wrote down on my application that I wanted to work with literature again. I know nothing about manga." He frowned at the young woman across from him who just continued to smile at him with a carefree face that reminded him frighteningly of his twin brother.

"There has to be a mistake." He repeated again, "You must have grabbed the wrong form. There's no way this can be right."

"But I got this from the director this morning." She replied cheerfully, holding out the form for him to see.

_Business Name: __Køhler__ Publishing Company_

_Name of Employee: Vargas, Lovino _

_Assigned to: Ruby (Shojo Manga Department)_

Lovino groaned again and stared down at the table.

"Is there any way the director could have made a mistake?" he asked quietly.

"Nope." The girl continued to grin, "Even if he had, his assistant would have caught it and fixed it right away."

Lovino sighed in defeat but refused to look at her.

It didn't seem to bother the young woman though as she stood and continued to speak peppily.

"I'll show you to the editing department now then."

Lovino slammed his hands down on the table, making several of the occupants in the cafeteria look over at him in surprise, but he nonetheless got up and started to follow her.

_Damn this sucks!_ His thoughts ranted internally as he followed the girl through the hallways towards his decided fate. He had quit his last job for personal reasons that didn't have anything to do with the particular career itself. He loved being an editor for literature. While he knew that it was the author's words and hard work that ultimately made a book great, he couldn't help but feel a sense of pride when the books that he had specifically edited were top hits. And he could actually stand to talk with the authors because most of them were intelligent and could carry on a proper conversation that didn't involve a lot of unnecessary jokes and banter. He also had no qualms about telling them outright that something was terrible and to fix it because most of them just took it without argument and then made their own decision whether to listen to him or not. Most usually realized he was right and did fix it. It made things easier because much as his grandfather insisted that Lovino actually loved confrontation and getting into arguments with people, that wasn't really the case. He would rather avoid it if at all possible.

Yes he had really liked working with literature and the authors that created it so...

_Why the hell am I stuck with manga now?!_

That was his brother's domain. His younger twin had been a manga author and artist for about five years now, and from what Lovino could tell, his work was quite popular. He wrote under a penname of course, _Italia Daisy_, so that he could keep his personal life and work life separate. Wouldn't want to have the great _Vargas Family_, owners of the very well known Vargas Publishing Company be associated with girly manga as more than just something they published. In fact, Feliciano's work was actually published at _this_ company as opposed to their families. Briefly Lovino wondered if he might actually see some of his brother's work in his new position (he had always refused to read it when his brother would ask).

As they entered the elevator the woman began talking again.

"By the way, you're the fifth guy to join this particular editing department."

Lovino blinked, "Huh? I thought that being a shojo manga editor was basically a dead-end job for a guy." Part of the reason why he had been so annoyed about being assigned to it.

"Oh no." the girl laughed, "While in the past the department was kind-of a deadweight, recently they've become quite an asset to the company. I think the new chief editor has something to do with that. They even got an award from the CEO. Besides..." she giggled and Lovino was beginning to wonder how someone who acted so unprofessional had been able to get a job with the company, "...they're all really handsome!"

Lovino groaned inwardly and stared up at the elevator ceiling. Why was he stuck having to follow such a person around?! Then something clicked in his mind and he turned to her.

"You said _all_, does that mean there's not a single woman in the department?"

"Not one." The girl grinned, "Which means that the women in the other departments don't feel like there's any competition from within that would get in their way. Several have been wanting to ask one of the guys out for a long time now. I'm sure that you'll have several interested in you after you've been in the department for awhile."

Lovino groaned internally again and looked at the shiny wall. That was the last thing he wanted at this new company. He had had to deal with that at his family's company as well, not to mention the fiancé he wasn't interested in, and he was frankly sick of it. He supposed that he would have to endure it for the two weeks that he planned to come before he found an excuse to quit. Because he was _definitely _quitting.

"Hmmm..." the girl tapped her chin with her pen, "Speaking of the guys has made me realize that I don't remember what stage of the cycle they're in. I guess we'll find out."

The elevator doors opened and Lovino followed her into a new area with a fresh question in his mind.

"Cycle? What does that mean?"

"Ah you'll understand soon enough." She giggled again and Lovino rolled his eyes.

As they continued to walk in the direction of his new department, Lovino began considering his options for the next two weeks. He might be going to quit but that didn't mean that he couldn't learn something from the new chief editor. The man was probably very intelligent and had figured out a new system or something in order to pull the department out of its rut. He could prove a useful source of information in that regard that could benefit him in his next job.

The young woman came to a stop in front of a doorway and froze. He came up beside her and bowed without even looking into the room.

"It's nice to meet you. I'm Lovino Vargas you're new coworker. I'm looking forward to working with all of you." He waited for a response but the only one that came was from beside him.

"Ah uh...bad stage."

Lovino blinked and was going to ask her what she meant when her voice went higher.

"Well I'll leave you now. Good luck!" and with that she was gone.

"Huh?!" he stood up from the bow and stared after her in shocked confusion before turning his attention back to...

_What the hell?!_

The room before him was nothing like he had expected. If it had been one of the animes that Feliciano so enjoyed then a dark cloud of despair would have hung over the entire area and a single deep note of an instrument would have sounded to welcome him. Stacks of what had to be manga volumes covered almost all available space in the room and nearly blocked the people in the room from view. One of the three figures that he could see was leaning backwards in his chair with glazed eyes and clothes completely askew. He had bright blond hair and appeared to be of pretty sturdy build and tall, but none of that could compare with stains all over his shirt and the fact that he looked half dead. The other two visible figures in the room had their heads down on their desks but he couldn't make out the features of the one across the table. The one closest to him had completely disheveled blond hair though and as Lovino approached him, it was plain to smell that the man hadn't washed in several days.

"Uh excuse me..." Lovino shook the man's shoulder gently...and the figure fell sideways out of the chair.

He leapt back in horrified shock as the small man managed to get onto his hands and knees with a groan and looked at him out of bleary green eyes.

"Mmm...what?" the man murmured, "Who wants to know?"

Lovino blinked and stole himself to try and speak calmly with the _practically unconscious_ man.

"Um my name's Lovino Vargas and I was assigned to this department. I'm supposed to meet with the head editor and start work today."

"Ah, is that so..." the blond murmured again turning towards the far end of the room.

"Antonio the new bloke is here." When no reply came the man tried again, "Antonio? Antonio! OY HERNANDEZ!"

"Callarse!" a new voice shouted out, "I already have a headache!" And Lovino at last noticed the final figure in the room. He had his legs crossed and swung up onto his desk and was leaned back in his chair with a manga volume covering his face. As he pulled the volume off and slammed it down on the desk he turned to look at Lovino out of deep – if a little unfocussed – emerald green eyes, from under unkempt hazelnut brown bangs.

Lovino gaped in astonishment. This? This was the chief editor?!

The man continued to look at him for a bit before he slid his feet off the desk and sat up properly.

"So you're the new employee huh?"

"Yes, I've been assigned to this department." Lovino replied trying to keep his cool and not sound offended at being addressed by such an unkempt man, "I'm Lovino Vargas."

The man blinked and stared at him hard which made Lovino feel a bit uncomfortable, before he turned back to the laptop on his desk and began typing away. Lovino wondered if this was his way of being dismissed but the man started speaking while typing.

"Sorry I couldn't make it to the interview, but as you can see things are a bit chaotic right now. You have worked as an editor before though I understand?"

Lovino nodded.

"I worked for Vargas Publishing Company for three years."

"Your family's company?"

"Yes but I didn't get hired there just on coattails if that's what you were wondering." Lovino defended himself pointedly.

"I wasn't thinking that." The man replied which surprised Lovino. He had assumed that anyone would believe that was the only reason. That was certainly what the people in his old company had believed. He had heard his coworkers talking and complaining that he been given top authors just because he was the director's grandson. That was the main reason why he had decided to quit and change to a different company where he could prove that he was a good editor because of his hard work and talent, not because of his family connections.

"Do you often get lost in your thoughts?" the head editor's voice broke him from his musings and caused him to blush slightly.

"Sorry."

"It's fine. Just don't do it often. Focus on your work more. That's why you're here."

Lovino sighed and nodded.

"Yes sir."

The man nodded and went back to typing again.

"So what manga department were you in?"

"I wasn't actually." Lovino responded.

The typing stopped and the man turned to stare at him with an 'are you serious?' expression before he turned back to his computer and slammed his head down on the desk.

Lovino jumped and started to say something but the man's tired voice hissed out.

"You're useless to me then."

Lovino gaped at him and made a decision right then and there. This guy...was horrible.

"Mr. Hernanadez," The large blond spoke up at that moment holding a phone in one hand, "I've just been informed that the sub mat is done."

"All right then" the chief editor stood up and started heading out of the room before he stopped and turned back, "Hey new guy. Why don't you follow me and I'll try and find some use for you."

Lovino flinched at the condescension in his words and tone but he did as instructed and followed after him anyways.

"You'll learn best by watching I suppose." The older man sighed to himself as they entered the elevator.

Lovino blinked and decided to risk a couple of questions starting with...

"I'm sorry to have to ask this but could you introduce yourself to me...I think I got it from listening to the two blond men, but I would feel more comfortable if you would tell me yourself."

The head editor nodded.

"I'm Antonio Hernandez. Editor in Chief of the shojo manga department which is called Ruby."

Lovino nodded and said, "It's nice to meet you." before he dared to ask his next question.

"Sub mat means substitution material correct?" his brother had had to produce some sub mat a couple of times when the actual expected author hadn't delivered.

"Si." Antonio yawned, "It's for one of our popular teen magazines."

"Is it for this month?" Lovino asked.

"Si" the man yawned again.

"When is the release date?"

"Seven days. And she started working on it three days ago so I hope that everything is fine."

Lovino gaped at him.

"Why didn't you just use some new author material? I'm sure you have some."

"We have plenty and they're all poor." The head editor shrugged as the elevator doors opened and they exited.

"But isn't sub mat just filler?" Lovino asked.

Antonio stopped and whirled to him with angry eyes.

"That kind of talk has no place in this business. Whether you're an author or an editor, if you treat something as just filler then you're an idiot. Open spaces should be filled by rubies as our name implies, not rocks. Even if the gem isn't entirely polished." He snapped and whirled back around.

Lovino felt guilty at his former thoughts and remained quiet the rest of the way to the cafeteria to meet the sub mat author.

~*LC*~

Lovino wasn't sure what he had been expecting from the meeting with the sub mat author but it was certainly not what was currently taking place. Hernandez had read over her work but then found a spot that he felt needed adjusting. Apparently one of the kiss scenes was lacking something. The chief editor had asked her to make it more dramatic, a task which she had been struggling with for the past 15 minutes with some input from the older man here and there.

Finally Antonio sat back in his chair with a sigh and put his chin in his hands.

"This is no good. Can't you draw from your own experiences? You have kissed someone before right?"

Lovino and the woman both stared at the man in shock.

_Isn't that question considered sexual harassment?!_

"We...well you see...um...you can't really see yourself kissing when you do it can you?"

Antonio considered that for a moment before he nodded with a tired smile.

"No I suppose not. Well alright then, I'll have to show you one."

Lovino snapped to attention.

"Reference materials, I'll go get them sir."

"There's no need for that newbie." Antonio waved a hand and grabbed his wrist as he made to leave, "Now ready your materials and watch closely, pay careful attention to the angles of both faces so you can work expression in properly." He instructed the author.

"But how is she going to...? What do you mean...?"

Lovino's questions were cut off when his new boss dropped his wrist, wrapped an arm around his waist and used the other to tilt his chin up so that they were staring into each other's eyes and then...

The bastard kissed him! And not just a quick peck! There was no tongue at least but there was some lip movement and it lasted too long for...WHY THE HELL HAD IT HAPPENED IN THE FIRST PLACE.

"Did you get that?" Antonio turned back to the artist who had hurriedly scribbling with a huge blush on her face and eyes that were practically dancing with excitement, "I can do it again if you need to."

"Like hell you will!" Lovino shouted leaning against his chair, still reeling from shock, "The hell do you think you were doing bastard?"

"Doing?" Antonio blinked, "Work of course. And by the way, it would be a good idea to tone the volume and language down when in the work place."

_How can you act so fucking calm when you just did that?! I'm...gonna...kill...this...bastard!_


	3. Lovino Ch2

_**The Case of Lovino Vargas Ch.2**_

"You haven't come to my apartment unannounced for awhile Lovi, did something happen on your first day at your new job?" Feliciano asked with a smile, setting down farfalle in front of his brother.

"Not really."

Like hell he was going to tell his brother that he had been used as reference material and been kissed by his new boss.

"I just didn't feel like cooking for myself tonight and convenience store food didn't sound appealing either."

Feliciano smiled knowingly and left his brother at the table to settle onto his couch and begin drawing again.

"Are you working on another manga? What is it this time?" Lovino asked between bites.

Feliciano raised his eyes up in surprise.

"You don't usually take an interest in my work Lovi. Something really did happen at work today. What's wrong?"

Lovino shook his head and shoveled more pasta into his mouth before he took a gulp of soda and decided on what to explain.

"I got stuck in the shojo manga department, Ruby. So I have to take an interest in manga now whether I want to or not."

"Oh Ruby! That's the department Ludwig's in!" Feliciano exclaimed with excitement.

"So that is the department that publishes your work then." Lovino sighed.

While he clearly hadn't seen the man, at least not properly since the entire staff of Ruby had been basically dead, that day, Ludwig Beilschmidt had been his brother's childhood friend and was now his editor. While Lovino had an unexplained hatred towards the man, he couldn't deny that Ludwig was probably one of the only people that could put up with his brother while also being able to keep Feliciano on track and not give in to his complaining.

Feliciano smiled and nodded.

"Yep Ruby is great. I've met the head editor Antonio once before as well. He told me I could call him Toni. He was really nice."

Lovino blinked. Toni was a common enough nickname but it still sent a jolt through his body. Memories of high school came flooding back and he was lying naked underneath the older boy once more and gasping out his name.

_Toni. Toni. Ah! Nnn...Toni!_

"Lovi?" he jerked back into awareness to find Feliciano leaning over him.

"Wh...what?" he gasped out, trying to turn his attention back to his food.

"You started sweating and your whole body went tense. Are you really ok?"

Lovino tried to act annoyed again.

"I'm just pissed about being stuck in a manga department when I expected to continue working in literature."

Feliciano looked sympathetic. He knew how much his brother really loved literature and had been reading as much as he could ever since they were little. But while Feliciano had adopted a love of manga as well, Lovino didn't much care for it. Being placed in Ruby must have been quite a shock and disappointment to Lovino's expectations, but...

Feliciano studied his brother carefully with a knowing smile. No matter if he liked it or not, Lovino would put all his effort into being the best he could in whatever position he was placed in. That was just the kind of guy his brother was.

~*LC*~

Lovino stepped back into Ruby office space later that night after having left his brother's apartment in annoyance when Ludwig showed up. Since the guy was _indeed_ half dead, Feliciano had begun bustling around trying to feed him and insisting he take a shower and get sleep. The attention had been too much for Lovino to stand so he had left. And then made a split decision to go back to his new work and start to do what he could to improve his knowledge and prove people wrong. Especially the _nice _boss he now had.

"Nice boss my ass." Lovino grumbled as he set a whole stack of manga on his desk, "First the guy calls me useless, then forces his lips on me, then tells me that I should quit if I'm not going to take the job seriously, and THEN has the audacity to ask if we've met somewhere before! I worked for another publishing company for crying out loud! Of course we probably met in passing before, but it's not like I remember him!"

"Hey what are you doing? And why are you shouting at thin air?"

Lovino whirled to find Antonio in the doorway.

"Gah!" He exclaimed, wondering if his boss had heard his rant, and the turning annoyed again as he simply replied, "Studying manga since I'm not familiar with it."

"Have you read any before at all?"

"Not really." Lovino shrugged.

Antonio sighed.

"Useless."

"Don't jump to conclusions bastard!" Lovino jumped to his feet glaring at the man, he didn't care that he had just called his boss a bastard, he was absolutely furious at being called useless, "You don't even know me or what I'm capable of! I'll show you! Just you wait!"

Antonio's eyes flashed at his words and he smiled slightly and chuckled.

"I'll look forward to that then." He turned around and waved his hand in farewell, "Don't exhaust yourself noob. See you tomorrow."

Lovino stared after him for a few moments before he sat down and pulled the first manga volume off the stack.

"I can do this." He muttered again, "Just watch me."

~*LC*~

The scene that greeted an incredibly sleepy Lovino Vargas the following day when he walked into work was not the one he was expecting. Two extremely cheerful and practically sparkling guys raised their hands in greeting.

"Ah scuzie I made a mistake. I'm looking for Ruby."

"What are you talking about?" the short blond _prince _grabbed his arm and pulled him into the room and gestured around with a flourish, "This is Ruby!"

Lovino stared around at the clean, organized, and completely sparkling space and couldn't even imagine that the hell-hole from the day before had been contained in the same area.

"Welcome Lovino!" A man that he had completely overlooked yesterday grinned at him with a peculiar long curl bobbing on his head. Was it just him or did that thing have a face in it?!

"We apologize for yesterday." Ludwig spoke up from behind his desk. The tall man was now wearing a perfectly pristine white shirt and tie with his hair combed back like Lovino was used to seeing it, "But we just barely got the manuscript in before the deadline, so now things are fine."

"So this is your first time working on manga right?" the smaller blond spoke up and Lovino was a bit disturbed to note that the things above the man's eyes, which he had assumed were just the product of filth and would come off with a good washing, were still there and were, in fact, eyebrows. Rather large eyebrows.

"Um...yes." he answered slowly.

"Well don't worry..." the guy with the peculiar curl spoke up again, "We'll teach you the ropes!"

Lovino blinked at them for a few minutes more before he took a step backwards.

"Ah...I have to...bathroom...yeah..."

He bowed and dashed out of the room as fast as he could, grabbing the first person he could and dragging him to the bathroom as well.

"No wait!" the other man shouted, "I'm not part of Ruby!"

"But you can maybe tell me what the hell is going on!" Lovino exclaimed as he released him inside the bathroom doors, "How the hell did that hell-hole turn fucking _sparkly_ over night?! I was here until late and it wasn't that way when I left!"

"It's the beginning of the cycle." The other man said.

"Come?" Lovino blinked and then realizing the man might not understand, "What?"

"Well those guys make books in 20 day cycles. In the beginning they're just working on editing scripts and everything is good. Next comes the storyboard check and things are still fine. When it reaches the draft check things are not as good. After they've accepted the manuscript they start staying later and sometimes not even going home at all, so things are really not good. By the end of the cylce they've stopped bathing and are working on a ridiculous time frame while trying to get the work perfect and to the printers. Basically that's the hell that you saw yesterday. But when it's all over and the book is to the publishers...those guys morph into what you see today."

"That still doesn't explain why everything's sparkly like in one of their mangas!"

"Well that's just it. When in Rome do as the Romans do." The man shrugged, "The head editor found that they can get into the mindset best in that type of environment. Think and act like the readers. Something like that."

"Ah..." Lovino blinked again and was about to ask something else when the man waved a hand.

"Well I really have to get back to work, but I'll tell you one thing more. Those guys are commonly referred to as the Maiden Club. Well good luck!"

Lovino waited for a few moments considering all that he had learned and deciding that he was even more confused and dazed than before as he walked back to face the _Maiden Club_, who were all still grinning and waiting for him with thumbs up.

"Welcome back." The blond said.

Lovino tried to ignore them as he sat down with a sigh. But he was acutely aware of a fourth pair of eyes on him and glanced over to find Antonio staring at him with a smile. The head editor appeared to have changed somewhat as well. The man even dared to wink at him. God he just wanted to sink through the floor.

~*LC*~

During the day Lovino was taught a lot of different things about manga from his new coworkers who introduced themselves as Arthur Kirkland, the small blond, and Im Yong Soo, creepy curl. But at one point he came across something that he just could not figure out, it had bothered him a bit when reading several of the mangas as well.

"Hey Arthur?"

"Hmm?" the man looked up from talking about photocompositions, "Something wrong?"

"I was just wondering if this author ran out of time. Because this two page spread is mostly white and this section only has toner and one line of text on it. It just seems like it wasn't really thought out or..."

"Idiota!" Antonio shouted, throwing a rubber tomato across the room at his head. Arthur had dove under the table at just the right moment.

"What did I say wrong?!" Lovino shouted, "Don't just go throwing things at people bastard!"

Antonio shook his head.

"Sorry but I cannot forgive moronic words like yours. That's a maiden's heart throb panel!"

Lovino blinked rubbing his head.

"Huh?"

"Just look at it." Antonio came over and leaned over Lovino's shoulder pointing at the pages.

"These are the scenes where the main character has finally gotten up the courage to tell the guy that she loves him. See here..." he pointed, "is the preparation? Using first person makes the readers more involved and emotionally attached. You hype up their suspense of what's coming by spanning it out over several frames and making each become bigger and closer until you finally come to...I love you."

He whispered the last phrase by Lovino's ear so heartfelt and tenderly that the young man felt his body tense and his face heat up.

"It's a feeling that anyone could understand." Im Yong grinned.

Lovino's stomach dropped and his body uncoiled as Antonio stepped away.

"Not really actually. I'm afraid I'm not very good with the concept of love."

"It's not a concept." Antonio said quietly but a bit harshly, "It's an emotion. An emotion not be toyed with."

Lovino blinked in confusion at the man's reaction but it didn't last long as his thoughts turned to the task at hand and his own personal feelings and understandings. It wasn't like he didn't believe in love, but he didn't think that it was accurate that someone could find happiness and love so easily. But it was a manga, a fantasy world, so his personal feelings and experiences didn't really apply. He had believed himself to be in love once, but that was back when he was a naïve boy. He was both glad and a little bit sad that he had grown into an adult and out of that mindset so quickly. But honestly, with what he had...

He felt a hand placed in his hair and whirled to face Antonio staring down at him.

"I just can't stop feeling like we've met somewhere before." The older man said softly, "But I have a horrible memory when it comes to things like that so I can't recall where."

Lovino was shocked at the contact and quickly brushed his hand away with a blush. How dare the man continue to harass him!

"We've both worked in literature so it was probably at one of those events. Just forget about it." Lovino said in annoyance turning back to his work and waiting for the man to go away.

"Ah yes that makes sense." Antonio rubbed a hand through his own hair and had started back for his desk when Im Yong spoke up suddenly.

"Lovi, what are you doing with that manga catalogue?"

Lovino groaned, that was the nickname his family had given him and frankly it was annoying. His full name wasn't so long that it had to be shortened! Antonio stopped in his tracks but didn't turn around.

"Since I just started I thought I should begin by memorizing our entire catalogue of manga." Lovino replied calmly.

"Seriously?!" Arthur exclaimed, "Do you know how many thousands of books there are?!"

"Well I'm not just memorizing their titles." Lovino explained with a frown, "I'm reading them all as well."

"Bloody hell!" Arthur exclaimed again, "There's no way I could do that!"

Lovino just shrugged and went back at studying the list.

"I used to do stuff like read every book in my school library so..."

Antonio whirled around with a shocked look on his face but Lovino didn't look up so he eventually shook his head and went back to his desk.

But Lovino was aware of what had happened and felt more self conscious and confused than ever. What the hell was with that reaction? Was the bastard actually slightly impressed with his ability? Or did he think that it was a ridiculous pastime? Either way, Lovino was more determined than ever to show that he could accomplish what he set out to do.


	4. Lovino Ch3

_**The Case of Lovino Vargas Ch.3**_

And so it was with this goal in mind that Lovino found himself sticking around longer than planned and entering the week or so of hell. His coworkers looked miserable, especially Ludwig who he knew was having to deal with Feliciano being behind on the deadline for his newest chapter. Im Yong had fallen asleep twice and been hit by Antonio's tomato. Lovino had to admit the foam item was effective when thrown with great force.

"What do you mean you don't know when it will be done?" Antonio shouted into his phone and broke Lovino from his thoughts. His boss was right, he did have a bit of a bad habit in getting lost in his thoughts.

"What do you mean you don't think you can get it done in time?! We've already had to extend the deadline and went through hell with the printer because of it!"

Lovino groaned and tried to get back to the task at hand since that should also hopefully block out Antonio's raging voice.

"Just shut up and get it done now!" Antonio shouted and slammed the phone down before picking up his briefcase and turning to the group.

"I need someone to come with me to the author's."

"Can't." Arthur moaned from underneath a stack of books.

"I have to go make sure my author is actually on task." Ludwig shook his head.

Im Yong didn't look up from his laptop.

Antonio sighed.

"Looks like it's you noobie. You'll have to learn skills by doing again."

Lovino flinched as the memory of what had happened the last time he had gone on a job with Atonio came into his mind, followed by awkward scenes that his dreams had had the audacity to form lately. He was about to protest that he couldn't possibly, it wouldn't feel right to the author to have such an inexperienced manga editor working on her precious manuscript, but Antonio practically dragged him out of the chair by the arm and out the door.

While they walked quickly Antonio made a phone call on his mobile and immediately his voice turned sweeter and coaxing, even a bit – Lovino shivered – _sultry_.

"Surely you can do something honey? I'm sorry to have to change plans on you again but I just can't make it today. I know that I already asked you to extend a couple of days ago but it's just not looking possible."

Lovino blinked and turned away with a disgusted huff. Why did Antonio have to make a personal phone call in front of him? And to a girlfriend of all people it sounded like! Just because they were heading out of the office didn't change the fact that they were still in the process of work!

"Oh ángel you're wonderful!" Antonio laughed, "I'm in your debt once more. You'll take the usual I assume?"

Lovino really felt sick now, for reasons he couldn't explain, and considered just continuing to walk out the door in the direction of the apartment and telling Antonio that he quit, instead of dealing in such a bizarre and unprofessional work place anymore. But Antonio hung up the phone with a cheery "Despedida" and then sighed as he placed it back in his pocket.

"Well that's one issue of today dealt with. And much as you're a rather useless noobie I hope that you will be able to help with the author today."

He managed to give Lovino a tired smile which made Lovino feel a little less annoyed at the man, just a little.

~*LC*~

Which is why the young man found himself staring at another crypt of misery rather than the inside of his apartment at that moment.

It appeared that all aspects of manga were the same in how the people in them looked at key points during the cycle. Apparently in this business, poor hygiene, starvation, and little to no sleep was a natural part of life no matter what position you held.

"T...Toni..." A woman sitting apart from the others at her own desk whimpered as the two men came into the room and towards her. She had bags under her eyes and was sniffling quite loudly with a shaky pencil in her hand. But that didn't seem to affect Antonio at all.

"Idiota! If you're gonna cry about it then avoid that by getting it done ahead of time!"

"When the inspiration doesn't come it doesn't come!" The woman shouted back furiously, practically snapping the pencil in her irritation.

"If you have time to argue then you have time to get your work done!" Antonio seemed to be ignoring her excuses blatantly.

"I told you I can't!" The woman sprang from her chair before gravity and exhaustion got the better of her fury and she collapsed back into it sobbing.

"I know I'm causing you trouble but I...I just don't think I can make it good enough so why bother trying? This page I've been working on for the past hour is supposed to be a featured spread in the magazine but...I can't...it's just not good enough I know...and I...I keep being told that I can fix it for the book release but...doesn't that make me a half assed author who can't make it right the first time?"

"What makes you more of a half assed author is not getting your work in on time." Antonio shook his head with a sigh.

"I know that!" the woman glared at him before dropping her gaze to her work table and picking up a pen to begin inking.

"How many more pages do you have to ink?" Antonio asked leaning over her shoulder.

"Five." The woman replied with a rather loud sniffle.

"Seriously?" Antonio groaned, "Get your work done Héderváry. Has your wedding planning really taken over your life? I might have to have a word with Mr. Edelstein..."

"I'm trying god fenébe!" she half shouted and half groaned as she glared at the editor out of her flashing green eyes, "Roderich has nothing to do with my lack of inspiration! Just get off my back and let me get back to work!"

Antonio shook his head and sighed again as he went over to a working table to begin placing in toner and speech bubbles.

Lovino continued to stare at the author. This was the great Elizaveta Héderváry, author of two wonderfully completed manga series and currently working on her third. Of the hundreds of series he had read recently, hers had actually been one of his favorites. He was genuinely looking forward to the next chapter. Something he thought he would never admit to even himself about a manga.

For this reason, Lovino felt sincerely sorry for the woman having to endure such condescension from Antonio. The bastard! Couldn't he see that she hadn't been sleeping and was quite stressed about her work.

"Hey Antonio..." he began in a whisper as he came over towards the work table and leaned over.

"If you have time to talk, you have time to work. Now get to it." Antonio shoved some papers across to the other side of the table where he was to sit. Lovino sighed and, with much grumbling to himself and cursing of his boss in his head, sat down and did get to work.

Only the sound of scratching pencils, pens, and exacto knives filled the air for a long while before one scratching stopped and Elizaveta's voice spoke with an uneasy sounding calm.

"Hey, do you think this manga is any good?"

Lovino and Antonio both looked up in surprise.

"Is it too late to fix it?" she continued, putting her head in her hands and letting the unease fully break out in gasping breaths, "I don't...I don't really know if what I'm writing is good anymore or if it's just crap and I should give up. I don't...I don't know."

"Si, it's too late." Antonio snapped, "If you had gotten it done earlier you could have time for thoughts like that but not now. Get it done."

Lovino gritted his teeth and glared at the man. The woman was seriously doubting her abilities and here was her editor telling her that it didn't matter and it was too late?! How could Antonio be so heartless?! He would never have dreamed of treating one of his authors like that, even when they were coming down to the wire and hit a snag he had tried his best to be encouraging and help them figure out how to fix things. Why wasn't Antonio doing that?! He would be furious if Ludwig did the same with his brother. The large blond was strict and harsh, but not cruel, not usually.

"Antonio...I...don't...think..." Elizaveta began in a tear laced voice.

"Crying about it wastes time." Antonio said calmly.

That did it!

Lovino pushed himself up forcefully, determined to help in some small way if Antonio refused.

"Excuse me Miss Héderváry, I just wanted you to know that I bought your last volume because I think that your manga is very good. The style is great and the characters are easy to relate to and seem more believable than some others that I've read. You're one of my new favorite manga authors. And I think that's saying something coming from a guy who's never read manga before in his life."

Lovino was aware that his emotions and desire to make the beautiful author feel better were causing the words to just spill unchecked out of his mouth, so he finally managed to stop them before he said something stupid like _Your manga makes me feel warm and happy inside _or _It's so sparkly and lovey_...ugh sickening that he even thought these things! Being a shojo manga editor was messing with his brain, he was starting to sound more like his brother every day!

Elizaveta blinked at him a bit before she shook his head.

"Why did you waste your money when you could just get the volume from work?"

Lovino shook his head as well and smiled.

"I didn't consider it a waste of money since I would be supporting you with it."

"But your company is who pays me so the money actually goes back to them first. Isn't that like giving your own salary back to your company?"

Lovino blinked and then gaped in astonishment.

Laughter broke out from behind them and Antonio was suddenly beside him with a hand on his shoulder and a satisfied grin on his face.

"You're more of an idiota than she is at present."

Lovino couldn't stop from blushing at the realization of both people's words and just wanted to sink through the floor at that moment, but Antonio's grip on his shoulder tightened and he heard a soft whisper in his ear.

"Well done noobie. I think you cheered her up a bit."

Lovino hoped desperately that he hadn't flinched outwardly at the warm breath tickling his ear and how close Antonio was. The kiss invaded his thoughts again and he tried desperately to force them back and focus on the author once more.

"You see Liz." Antonio smiled, "Even the rookie admires your work, but that's not possible if you don't get it done. I know you can do this and I'd really hoped to push you to it by being harsh but if you're really concerned then relax a bit."

Elizaveta blinked in confusion.

"But the deadline..."

"I talked to the printer and you've been given an extension until tomorrow morning." Antonio smiled, "So calm down a bit and we'll all be able to get this done in time. Though you are aware that things like this lower your reputation a bit right?"

Elizaveta nodded and rolled up her sleeves.

"I'll be sure to make up for it next chapter!"

"Glad to hear it. Now back to work. Rápido!"

"Sir!" Elizaveta was nothing but smiles now, despite her exhaustion, as she began to ink once more.

Lovino looked at Antonio with new found respect as they walked back to their work station to continue working as well. It appeared that he had been wrong. The man hadn't been flirting with his girlfriend on the phone, he had been using his charm to coax one of the female printers to give Miss Héderváry more time to finish. And while he might find that a bit of an unprofessional approach, there was one thing that Lovino had easily learned about manga publishing, the printers did not extend deadlines easily. So it appeared that editors had to pull out all sorts of tricks in order to persuade them. He wondered what the _usual _was that Antonio would have to give the female printer. For some reason, the thought that it might be a nice dinner made his insides clench and feel sick.

_What the heck?! I have to ignore this and focus on my work!_

_Focus on my work! _

_Focus on my work god damnit!_


	5. Lovino Ch4

(AN: Pre-warning, this chapter contains a lot of cussing because Lovino is piiiiissed and emotional, not a good combination)

_**The Case of Lovino Vargas Ch.4**_

After Lovino and Antonio finally left Elizaveta's studio and stopped by the printers to drop off the manuscript, they dragged themselves into their own office to make sure that there was nothing further they needed to do before they could go back to their homes and rest.

Lovino collapsed on the couch in one of the break rooms, completely exhausted and rubbing his eyes against the rising sun's beams that glinted through the window behind him.

"Why is the sun so damn bright already?" he groaned and placed his elbows on his knees and let his face fall completely into his hands.

"Get used to it." Antonio sighed, coming to sit beside him and offer one of the sodas he had just gotten from the vending machine, "No matter the time of day, sleep deprived eyes view the sun as being brighter."

Lovino groaned again and accepted the soda can with a small "Grazie."

Antonio clicked his own can open and took a deep swig before he put it on the table with a sigh.

"You know Liz isn't usually like that. I rarely have seen her that hysterical. She must really have been stressed to be questioning herself like that. But you certainly helped to cheer her up. Good work nooby."

Lovino felt himself blushing and quickly took a drink from his own soda to try and hide it.

"I didn't really say anything that should have been that encouraging. And I said way too much than was necessary. I just...have this habbit of blurting out whatever I'm feeling when I've started talking animatedly."

Antonio gave a little chuckle.

"Blurting things out without thinking huh?"

Lovino blinked in surprise. Antonio had laughed. Lovino had never heard him laugh before, smile yes, the older man had quite a nice smile. Lovino felt his cheeks warm and his heart start pounding and he tried to force them down with annoyance. He should not be getting worked up like that just because the man had laughed and smiled. Antonio was his boss, and a man at that.

"Still..." Antonio continued and looked directly at him, "I think that people who are straightforward are quite something. It takes a lot of courage to speak your mind. And when they do, it can have a great impact on those they talk to."

Lovino felt his heart racing even more at being looked at and round-about praised. He too admired Antonio in turn. He had seen first-hand that the man had the ability to help an author see their full potential and encourage them to nourish it into something truly special. A gem. A ruby.

His heart pounded even more and he snapped his eyes away from the other man and glared angrily down as his hands clenched on his knees. Why was his body reacting in such a way? It hadn't reacted like this since high school. Since...

_Toni..._his mind moaned and he closed his eyes and forced his breathing to be calm and his heart to slow. Be it guy or girl he had made a promise to himself never to fall in love again. Love was Feliciano's domain. It belonged in manga and novels. He was part of the world of hard work and logic.

"You may be older but you're still the same I guess."

"Huh?" Lovino blinked and turned to his boss, "I don't understand what you mean?"

Antonio blinked back at him and sighed. "Then you really don't remember me I guess. That hurts, Lovi."

Lovino sighed as well and gave him his most serious glare.

"Look you keep talking like we've met before but I'm telling you you've made a mistake. You must have me confused with someone else because I had never met you before starting work here and..." He stopped as something clicked in his mind. Antonio had called him Lovi, but not in the same way that his brother, coworkers, or even fiancé, did. Only one person had ever called his nickname in such a way before. Only one...Oh God!

Suddenly he was forced back onto the couch with Antonio on top of him pinning his wrists to the side. It was such a shock that Lovino instantly broke his stupid conclusions and began to struggle, yelling angrily at the man.

"The hell you doing?! Get off me, bastard! This isn't a game!"

Antonio caught his breath just briefly and gritted his teeth.

"Game huh? Yeah I guess it was always just a game to you."

"Wha...?" Lovino was about to start yelling again but Antonio's next rushed words cut him off.

"You said you loved me, or do you conveniently forget saying that either? Well maybe this will help you remember."

And before Lovino knew what was happening, Antonio was kissing him, and not like before in front of the mangaka. This was hard and forceful, and did involve tongue, a lot of it. Lovino struggled as hard as he could even as his mind flashed back to 10 years before in a similar situation. With Toni Carriedo and that first of many nights. And it made him angry that he was forced to remember the bastard in such a manner. He got a wrist free and smacked Antonio's face hard, forcing the other man to recoil and sit up as Lovino rolled off the couch.

"Look bastard, get your crazy delusions out of your head because I am a man who likes women ok?"

Antonio rubbed his head, grimacing, and got off the couch.

"Whatever you say, but remember this Lovi, you're the one that said you loved me. While you may have forgotten that, Toni Carriedo has not." And with that he walked out the door leaving Lovino sitting stunned, flushed, and his head racing a mile a minute.

_Oh god! Oh God! OH GOD! This could not be happening! He could not be the same person! The one he had tried so hard to force out of his head and heart that he had even gone so far as to forget his face. _

But now it came back to him along with his full name...Antonio Hernandez Carriedo!

_Oh my fucking hell!_

~*LC*~

By the time Lovino was able to drag himself off the floor and head down in the elevator, Antonio was nowhere to be seen. Not that he had wanted to see him or anything damnit! Why would he want to see the bastard now that he knew who he truly was and remembered what he had done to him as a young teenager. So innocent and trusting.

_Shit! _

He slammed the main door of the building shut behind him and decided to hail a taxi to his apartment rather than deal with a crowded train. In the back seat of the cab his mind refused to stop playing his memories from 10 years ago and it was making his body react in a way that made him so incredibly uncomfortable that he nearly sprang from the cab when it pulled up in front of the apartment complex where he lived.

And then it seemed like the blasted elevator took forever to move up just one floor. When the doors at last slid open onto his floor he was clenching his teeth so hard that they might actually crack soon, and his knuckles had turned white on the strap of his work bag. With determination to immediately take a shower and force himself to stop letting memories run through his head he dropped his bag in front of the door and jammed the key to his apartment into the lock.

At least...he thought it was his apartment, but the key didn't seem to want to turn.

"Che!" He cursed, "Let me in, fucking door!" He tried to force the key to turn and slammed his hand against the door.

"Well you seem very intent on getting inside my apartment, Lovi. Now why is that I wonder?" a voice that made him freeze spoke up from a few feet away.

_Do not look. Do not look at him. Bastard what the fuck is he doing here? Do not look! Do not..._

Lovino turned to face Antonio. The man was studying him with a mixture of confusion, pleasure, and smugness.

"I must admit I didn't expect you to come confess your love for me right away." Antonio spoke again, the smile growing on his face, "How did you even know where I live? Have you been stalking me again? That really takes me back to the old days in high school, Lovi."

Lovino finally found his voice after wanting to scream and curse at the man that had ruined him for life.

_I'm going to scream. He's going to get an earful. Don't you dare say those things to me you bastard! You have some nerve looking at me like that. You honestly think that I came to tell you I love you? Fuck no! I...I..._

"I live here." he blinked at the older man.

Antonio blinked back at him and pointed at the number.

"259. This is my apartment. It has been for several years now."

Lovino looked up at the number before calmly removing his key from the lock and picking up his bag from in front of the door. He didn't look at Antonio again as he shuffled a few steps over to the side to stand in front of his apartment. 257. He placed his key in the lock and turned it easily. With a click the door opened, and he still did not look at the other man. But as he prepared to step inside an arm blocked his path.

He gritted his teeth and still did not look.

"Let me through."

"How long have you lived here?"

"Since I changed companies. And I have to move again apparently. Let me through."

The arm did not budge.

"Why do you have to move again?"

_Why?_

Lovino took a deep breath to try and calm himself but it was no good this time.

"Why?!" He whirled to stare directly at Antonio, "You want to know why?! Because of you, you bastard!"

Antonio blinked at him and was about to speak again when Lovino heard the elevator ding.

"Shit! Get in here!" He grabbed the arm in front of him and dragged Antonio with him into the apartment, practically throwing him onto the floor before he turned and slammed the door behind him. Then he leaned back against it breathing heavily. He wasn't crying, _Thank god, _but he was trembling violently. Nerves and rage billowed within him and he knew that being utterly exhausted wasn't helping much either. But he must fight the urge to slip down the door to the floor and lean his head against his knee. He could not show such weakness in front of the man. His boss, Antonio Hernandez. Toni Carriedo.

_Toni_

His voice from the past moaned through his mind and he squeezed his eyes shut, not wanting to look at those startled perfect green eyes anymore that were making his mind and body remember such memories.

_Shit! Why the fuck did I pull him inside my apartment with me? Why? I just want to die right now!_

He tried to make his breathing calm and still refused to open his eyes. He was aware of the change of space as he heard shifting and the sound of tapping on the floor. Heavy breathing seemed to resound in his ears and his hand was hesitantly removed from the door and clasped in another's fingers.

"Lovino..." Antonio's voice was no longer teasing like it had been out in the hall. It was now soft and smooth as well as serious, "What did you mean just now? I'm the reason you have to move again? Does my presence really bother you that much? Does it remind you of your guilt?"

"_My _guilt?!" Lovino snapped his eyes open and stared in shocked fury at the older man, "_My _fucking guilt?! The one who should be completely wracked with guilt is you, fucking bastard! You're the one that used me and laughed in my face!"

Antonio blinked and his face turned completely confused.

"I...what are you talking about? When did I ever?"

Lovino snatched his hand away and looked at the ceiling with a harsh laugh.

"You are unbelievable! Forgot immediately I bet! Moved on to toy with another right away I bet!"

"What the hell are you talking about?" Antonio demanded, snapping Lovino's attention back to stare at him once more. He clenched his fists and took a breath before screaming with all his fury.

"After the first month and I don't know how many times we had sex I asked you if we were going out and you didn't even look me in the eyes and just scoffed with laughter! I was young, in love, asking the one I wanted to be with more than anything a serious question, and YOU FUCKING LAUGHED!"

Antonio blinked at him and then sighed.

"You are more of a fucking idiot than me, Lovino."

Lovino gaped at him in complete astonishment.

"I guess that explains the kick then." Antonio sighed again.

"I...what the hell is with that reaction?! How dare you?! What kick?!"

"You really have forgotten everything about our past haven't you? Well let me remind you of something about that night. After you asked that question, just before I was about to tackle you and show you my answer, you went and round-house kicked me and then disappeared without a trace."

Lovino stared mouth open. He had kicked Toni? He didn't remember that, then again he didn't really remember anything after he had asked the question and been laughed at. And what the hell did Antonio mean by "show you my answer"? Had he actually been serious? But then...then...

"Why the hell did you laugh?" Lovino managed to get out.

Antonio sighed.

"Because the question was ridiculous, and you asking it so sincerely and adorably was just too much for me to handle. _Of course_ we were going out. Do you think I would continue to make love with a boy I cared nothing about? I wasn't that type of a person. But I struggled after that of course. After you just up and vanished. Now I've finally started to recover. I hope to God you struggled too."

Lovino was still utterly shocked, taking everything in.

"I..." he tried to speak but no words came out. He just mouthed empty air like a fish.

"Well mystery solved I guess. You thought I wasn't serious in our relationship so you reacted and fled. But now I know that you weren't just playing around with me either so..."

He stepped forward and grasped Lovino's face, pulling him in for a deep kiss.

Lovino found himself completely unable to resist or react until Antonio broke the contact and looked deep into his eyes with those dazzling emerald ones. His expression was both serious and passionate at the same time.

"So all you have to do is say I love you to me again and we can pick up where we left off in our relationship. Until then, sleep well, Lovi."

He gave him another brief kiss before he stepped past him and out the door, closing it carefully behind him.

Lovino still stood in shock for a few moments before his hands clenched and he squeezed his eyes shut, turning to the ceiling and screaming with all his might.

"That is never going to fucking happen!"

~*LC*~

_Days till Lovino Vargas falls in love, 318_


End file.
